Aryeh Avner, Chairman of the Ometz (Citizens for Proper Administration and Social and Judicial Justice) movement has complained to Israel's Defense Minister Ehud barak that "According to information reaching the Ometz movement, there has been an increase in the phenomenon where IDF soldiers are forced to listen to talks by rabbis on religious matters."

The donated scrolls are brought to Israel from synagogues throughout the world. They are in a worn or damaged state and donors are found to repair them and rededicate them in honor or in memory of loved ones or on special occasions. Upon their arrival in Israel, the scrolls are placed in different army, navy, and air force bases according to the needs of the IDF.

A delegation of some 60 IDF commanders arrived in Poland on Monday, April 16, as part of the Witnesses in Uniform program. Guided by educators from the Yad VaShem Holocaust Memorial Museum, the officers started a four day study of pre-war Poland, the Holocaust, and contemporary Jewish Polish life.

At least one person has been reported killed and several injured in the collapse of lighting for a stage being assembled at the Mount Herzl military cemetery in Jerusalem for Rememberance Day ceremonies.

Last Saturday at 7 a.m., Israeli Border Police detained and beat up a nine-year-old Jewish child in Hebron, after he entered a closed military zone near Machpelah House. The Hebron community's spokesman told the Jewish Press: "The border police acted like animals, attacking a child. They only care about attacking Jews."

Eighty-three reserves officers and soldiers yesterday sent the Defense Minister and the IDF Chief of Staff a letter supporting the Eisner, who had been suspended from his post. Additional support came from Hagit Rein, mother of Major B'naya Rein who was killed in the Second Lebanon War and whose body Eisner retrieved.

We would have expected the IDF brass, as well as Israel's government, to show restraint, perhaps count to 30, before throwing their own man under the media bus. But, alas, both IDF Chief of Staff Benny Gantz and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu condemned a senior IDF officer for the way he appears on a selectively edited Palestinian video on You Tube.

Egyptian Maj.-Gen. Ahmad Jamal said that Egypt's Interior Ministry decided to send 2,000 officers and soldiers from the Special Forces to the north of Sinai, in order to increase security control of the area. He said the ministry has already sent 150 officers and the rest will be sent soon. The main reason for sending them is to implement security plans, especially plans to protect the natural gas line.

Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Benny Gantz said the rocket fire that hit the city of Eilat Wednesday night was "an extremely severe act of hostility." Head of Military Intelligence Maj. Gen. Kochavi confirmed that "more than ten terror bases in Sinai were revealed and dismantled over the past few months." After the fall of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak’s, the rule of law has collapsed in much of Sinai, leaving a vacuum where Islamist militant groups are thriving.

As of Thursday, the Military Rabbinate will render all IDF bases kosher for the Jewish holiday of Passover. After weeks of heavy-duty spring cleaning, soldiers across the IDF will be joined in the field by military rabbis who will certify the bases and assist if need be. By the end of the day, with the mission accomplished, the IDF will be declared Kosher for Passover.

Remember the adage about how fences make for good neighbors? It turns out they work quite well for bad neighbors, too. Sunday night, IDF soldiers operating along the security fence in the central Gaza Strip identified a suspicious figure digging in the ground, suggesting he was attempting to plant an explosive device. The soldiers tried to distance him by firing at him, confirming a hit.

The first F-35 is expected to arrive in Israel in 2015, but Israeli pilots will be able to start training on it in the U.S. in 2014. A stealth fighter aircraft, produced by Lockheed Martin, the F-35 is considered to be the most advanced fighter aircraft to date.

The Pentagon will ask Congress for additional funds for the "Iron Dome" missile shields for Israel, based on their success in intercepting rockets launched from Gaza. Coming one day after drawing fire for his open-mic remarks, President Obama is winning points from pro-Israel Congress members for his increased support. Rafael, which manufactures the Domes systems, just reported $111 million in net earnings for 2011.

This week the 124th class of IDF Naval Officers, including three women, completed their training and were stationed on deck Israeli Navy vessels. While most IDF women serve only two years, these three officers have already served through the 36-month naval officers' course, as graduates will be required to sign up for at least an extra 16 months.

Israel and Germany signed a contract purchasing the Israeli Navy's sixth submarine Wednesday. It is an SSK Dolphin Class submarine. Last year the newspaper The Welt am Sonntag reported that German chancellor Angela Merkel conditioned the sale of the Dolphin on Israeli concessions to the Palestinians, which Netanyahu obliged.

Sergeant Yair Netanyahu will pay a heavy price for his longing for home cooking. The Prime Minister's son got 21 days detention after abandoning the Friday night shift in his unit and going to dine with his family.

In January The Marker reported that Elbit Systems Ltd., an Israel-based international defense electronics company had won a contract worth $50 million to supply the unmanned drone Hermes 900 to an unknown state on the American continent. Now Aviation Weekly reveals it must be the Mexican government.

The IDF Chief of General Staff, Lt. Gen. Benny Gantz concluded his official visit to Canada on Friday. Gantz was greeted by his Canadian counterpart, General Walt Natynczyk, who emphasized the importance he sees in strengthening security cooperation between the two countries. Since 2008 there has been an accelerated rapprochement between the Canadian and Israeli security establishments.

Watch compilation of rocket attack filmed by civilians. The cease fire which was supposedly declared last Tuesday morning remains more wishful thinking than an actual cessation of violence. Or perhaps, as some experts have said, this is the Islamic Jihad's new style of hurting Israel, delivering the cuts of a thousand knives in groups of only three a day, to make any serious IDF reaction appear "disproportionate."

It has been unclear whether we're having a lull in the war or an interrupted peace, as Netivot, Beer Sheva and other population centers are hit every few hours. Standing in front of shattered glass storefronts, Ashdod Deputy Mayor Boris Giterman said southern mayors are asking Netanyahu "to put and end to this story."